VATICAN MAKES ITS CHOICE

Interview with Cardinal Janis Pujats

Archbishop emeritus of Riga Cardinal Janis Pujats is one of the most respected people in Latvia. He is a top hierarch who publicly comments on acute problems and actively participates in public life, voting at referenda and addressing rallies. The voice of this wise man calling for good and justice is heard in the whole country.

Janis Pujats is a genuine patriarch of the Church. He was ordained a priest 62 years ago in 1951. During that time seven pontiffs ruled Vatican. The Latvian cardinal participated in the 2005 conclave which elected Benedict XVI to head the Roman-Catholic Church. The event was extremely important for his personal and spiritual lifes which have long been inseparable for him.

Janis Pujats watched the papal election in 2013 from the sidelines as cardinals over the age of 80 do not participate in the conclave and he was 83 at the time. The cardinal does not conceal that he was very agitated as much depends on the #1 man in general and the Church is no exception.

The Latvian cardinal does not personally know the new pontiff, but what he heard from his colleagues gives hope: with God’s help the Roman-Catholic Church will get a second breath under Pope Francis and will strengthen its positions in modern world on the basis of steadfast Christian values.

White smoke of hope

Three years ago on the eve of his 80th birthday Janis Pujats resigned as the archbishop of Riga. He now serves in the Virgin of Anguish Church in the very heart of the Old Town. He lives on the third floor of a small house in the yard of the church to where a steep staircase leads.

… His Eminence opened the door to me himself. He wore the red cap of a cardinal. It was a modest residence with two small rooms and a kitchen which also served as an entrance hall. There was nothing extra, to say the least.

There is a computer on your desk. Did you work?

There are no typewriters any longer. Computer makes it easier to write sermons. I am always short of time. I have to prepare for the other world. Not much time remains. . . And there are still a lot of books to read and no memoirs have been written. I have to put affairs in order so that they cause no trouble to anyone after my death. I have also to see to it that everything valuable is preserved and everything invaluable is disposed of.

You are likely to have attentively followed the election of the new head of the Roman-Catholic Church and recalled how you elected his predecessor. How does it happen?

Cardinals take oath not to divulge what is happening and what is being said behind closed doors of the Sistine Chapel where they gather with the corresponding prayer Pro Elegendo Romano Pontifice. In 2005 115 cardinals spent two days in the chapel and I am well aware what high responsibility it is to make a committed choice and properly understand the highest will. There is so much on the scale. . .

Natives from Baltic countries have headed Vatican of late and it was even called an amber bridge of religions… Did it help attract attention to the region?

The cardinals voted for Francis because they hoped he would preserve traditional values of the Bible and Christian creed.

It was a major honor and blessing for us. Baltic countries are too small to be honored by a papal visit. There are very many people in the world who wait for him to come, and in 1993 Pope John Paul II did visit us. He restored in Latvia the cult of St.Meinhard who was the first Bishop of Livonia. He revived Aglona Basilica which is a lively place for pilgrims today.

How do you assess the choice of your colleagues? Can we say that under the new Pope the bridge between countries and peoples has become longer and wider as it spanned across the ocean?

The cardinals voted for Francis because they hoped he would preserve traditional values of the Bible and Christian creed. His candidacy was in itself a worthy response to the challenges of the time. There are many believers in Latin America and they definitely have long deserved a representatives at the highest level. The hearts of the people were excited when he paid his attention to poor people. The election of Francis was welcomed by the Muslim world which cannot be ignored today.

There has been much talk of late about a conflict of civilizations. The number of Muslims in Europe is on the rise and new mosques are being built…

If Muslims want to build mosques in Europe why shouldn’t we build a Christian church in Saudi Arabia? But we can’t! They do not even allow Christians to pray at home. It is unfair. Do you want us to respect you? Then we have to see reciprocity. There can be only one solution – peaceful coexistence and no aggression. There are all grounds to believe that Francis will succeed in promoting dialogue and mutual understanding not only between all Christian confessions but also with the Islamic world.

There are three Christian religions in the Baltic Sea region. How do you see their dialogue and interaction?

The dialogue between Christian confessions is one of the best in Latvia. We have a good post-war cooperation experience and it successfully develops. We pray together on state holidays and jointly resolve many issues.

For example, had it not been for the resolute position of the Church Latvia would have adopted a law on same-sex marriages in 2007. It passed two readings in the Saeima. However the council for spiritual affairs at the prime minister which united heads of all Christian confessions succeeded to convince then Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis that such a law was inadmissible and the issue was dropped.

Earthly existence is given to mortals to comprehend God and divine laws and try and abide by them already in this life.

Current Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis had not convened the spiritual council for long and says: let experts deal with it. And who are the experts? Non-believers or homosexuals? Only the people can be the expert and they are not inclined to have liberal reforms. The world is already excessively liberal. I am sure the new pontific of the Roman-Catholic Church shares this opinion.

Challenges temper will

Could you, a village herdboy, ever imagine that you would become a car dinal?

I have never thought about it. I grew up in a village. I did not have a free minute as I had to constantly work – tend cattle, make hay and chop firewood. The father had 25 hectares of land. There were no tractors in the ’30s, it was all horse-driven. But we thoroughly ploughed the earth each piece of it. I had to walk three kilometers one way to school every day. The distance to the church w as six kilometers.

How did you come to believe in God?

I grew up in a religious family. Since ancient times my native Latgalia was inhabited by religious people. Communion and confession were major events and people prepared to them for long. Since childhood I have been surrounded by picturesque nature – hills and two lakes which reflected sunrise and sunset like mirrors. It was very beautiful and confirmed the greatness of God.

Not everyone can see it…

No, I believe it is more difficult for those who were born in a misfortunate place, somewhere in marshlands.

In those pre-war years people lived according to the rhythm of nature – sowing, first sprouts, flourishing, harvesting. The countryside differs from cities where you work for eight hours and are free after that. Sometimes you have to toil from dawn to dawn. It was a wonderful world where labor created man. Running your own agricultural business means schools temper.

There is no easy life today as enterprises shut down and people are sacked. Most population earns a minimum wage which is hardly enough to pay housing bills. Do you believe people are too much complaining about hardships and pity themselves? You generation had the hell of a time…

A human perceives the world in a way he merits it. Each has his own cross in the earthly life. Challenges make people know their weaknesses and drawbacks. Difficulties help expose them and cure, they grind and polish character, forge stubbornness, temper morality and thus prepare us for other life so that we are worthy to be in heavens among angels. Otherwise we will be barred from there. . .

Your should perceive challenges as the will of the Providence. Earthly existence is given to mortals to comprehend God and divine laws and try and abide by them already in this life. Everything we do is not senseless. Each deed lives a trace in eternity. The good will be rewarded and evil will be punished. The value of each day is to improve oneself and master love to God. This is the essence of theology, to put it briefly .

Many people are looking for better life abroad in emigration. Do you think it is a drive for change, improvement or escape from difficulties?

It may be good to go and make some money to launch a business back home. However it is unfortunate that people rarely come back.

Europe is full of emigrants from Baltic countries and Poland. Many of them are like vagabonds. It is bad. Our country is agricultural. Land has to be ploughed by horses if you cannot afford machines. After the First World War people lived in dugouts but did not surrender. They worked hard and in 20 years the country got back to its feet. They have to do everything to make the people work at home, in the native land so that there is enough food for them and for export.

Spoof target

In Soviet times they told us to care first for the native land and people around. However capitalism has a different essence – to elbow your way through and push others aside…

The very aim imposed on modern society is misleading – to ensure wellbeing and freedom. It means to live and treasure egoism and work for your own pocket. It makes people grab everything with both hands and get the biggest and sweetest pieces for themselves.

Wellbeing and personal freedom without God are spoof targets which open the door to the negative. Love thy neighbor as thyself. There is no justice if someone earns 10 thousand a month and another one has no money to buy bread. Are such people happy? No. Their eyes dislike what they see and ears what they hear .

It is impossible to build up an earthly life without God. Violations of commandments is a human tragedy in the whole world. There were seven capital sins and now we can count ten. Five are spiritual – pride, covetousness, anger, envy, and gambling, and five are corporal – lust, gluttony, alcoholism, drug addiction, and boozing.

Fifty years ago homosexuality was not considered a norm, at least officially. It was then legalized in America and spread to the Old World in Europe. It is a very alarming symptom! Society is doomed if it lives against natural laws.

There is a strata of vicious people in the West, I cannot call them differently, who enjoy homosexuality. They want to rise to power and often succeed. Constitutions of Germany, France, Spain, Scandinavian countries allow same-sex marriages which undermine the family. They pressure us! The law makes opponents of the unnatural conduct keep mum. You cannot even tell jokes about homosexuals as they are considered an insult. . .

You will be fined and jailed for that…. It is dictatorship for the sake of freedom!

In 20 post-Soviet years they advocated sex in this country and it undermined morality. Yet in early ’90s believers wrote to me: cinema halls are full of young people and show indecencies. Pornography is everywhere – in Internet and mobile phones. Sex has always been of major interest for the young and now they see that it is promoted at the top official level. Dirt flooded schools. Teachers do not want to speak about it, but they send advocates of same-sex love to teach indecencies to teenagers. Bad is the best. . .

Young people do not want to get married and make children. First they want to make money…

If a baby has been conceived he has the right to live. Only God can decided his fate. You have not only to rely on yourself but also believe in supreme forces. If God gives children he will also give food. Today people divorce two or even three times, according to statistics. It is a deadend for humanity or a path of Satan, to be more exact.

What do you think about apocalypse advertising campaign in the media? Some even interpreted the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI as a sign…

None of the mortals can know when apocalypse will come. Only God knows. But you can croak punishment from God. When humanity became so vicious that it was impossible to save it Deluge happened. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed when less than ten righteous men remained. God will not tolerate current vice for long. The Holy Writ says everyone will be stamped on the right hand or forehead in the times of the Beast so that nobody could either sell or buy without the stamp. It is already happening.

Had it not been for the resolute position of the Church Latvia would have adopted a law on same-sex marriages in 2007.

What do you mean?

There is only one way to govern “free society” – total control. Technology i s developing and allows to control all people. Soon the people in charge of control will actually control slaves like in ancient times. Outside control shall be replaced by inside control – consciousness. A man on the righteous path does not need any control.

Path to temple

How did Catholic Church in Latvia survive the Soviet times? You said in an interview that ungodliness was theoretical in the Soviet Union. Authorities tried to have nothing in common with the Church but did not show immoral movies and the Communists had their own code of morality. Now it is the time of practical atheism without any theory. Its task is to ruin humans…

Yes, it is. Vicious people easily get dependant – on drugs, alcohol – and do not understand the commandments of God. Media and Internet are full of negative things and people are tempted by the negative.

In Soviet times officials in charge of religious affairs controlled that prayers say nothing against the Soviet power. If the condition was observed they did not interfere with us. They were engaged in their own propaganda and we were engaged in ours, so to say. However they tightened the screws every year. First children were banned to take communion. Then young people under 18 years were prohibited from singing in church choir or serving. Teachers and officials were ousted, but non-party members were left in peace. There were more discipline and morality at the time. People drank less alcohol and refrained from smoking in schools. We knew nothing about drugs.

Do many people go to church today?

If we count residents and churches in the city, there should be no free place there on Sundays. But that does not happen.

There are churches in the countryside, but people left villages for cities or abroad. In my native Pujati village only two out of 22 houses are inhabited. Fields are overgrown with grass. Earlier you could see three churches from the top of a hill. Now only one.

Sounds like a philosophical parable…

The number of people increased in cities but there is no church in Kengarags or Imanta which are major districts of the capital city. Urban residents differ from rural people and do not like to walk. So it is necessary to build churches close to them. Today they pray in four languages in Riga – Latvian, Russian, Lithuanian, and Polish. Had they prayed in one language the church would be full. However everyone wants to speak to God in his own language and we want to help people in that. You cannot be an urban priest if you do not speak three-four languages.

You speak them. However last year Cardinal Pujats voted in a referendum against making the Russian language the second official one in Latvia…

All languages are equal before God. However there should be one state language in Latvia – Latvian. All have to know it but each is free to speak his native language. In pre-war Latvia they taught in Russian in schools.

You have been for many years advocating the introduction of the Bible chairs in schools. However there is no progress so far…

That is because of politicians! They do not want to understand that it is easier to teach the Bible chairs in school than later fight crime, build prisons to keep criminals at government expense. Those who comply with the commandments of God do not need either police or prisons.

The education minister has to officially declare that science should not struggle against religion. The existence of God cannot be experimentally verified. He is in another world which a human being cannot penetrate. Even if the rulers do not believe they should not impede their people to believe and many problems would be resolved. Discipline will strengthen and people will live better .

If there is belief and high goal, there will be God and heaven. If people understand what is in store they will not only adhere to the natural laws of God but will also enjoy them. Believers achieve several goals at a time – they keep their earthly affairs in order and thus come closer to heavenly life.

Can I ask you to preach for our readers?

The main thing is to understand that we do not have too much time on Earth – 80 or maybe 90 years. Our life is a path to eternity and therefore earthly and spiritual values should go hand in hand. It is simply unreasonable to lose such God’s grace as heaven and prefer hell because of sins!

To make us comprehend the truth God came down to Earth and allowed to be crucified to make us understand how important it is. But words are insufficient to us, we demand evidence!

Only the Christian religion has a commandment calling to Love Your Enemies. When you love them they are no longer enemies. There is only one enemy – the evil spirit who is to be hated.

There is a parable: both in heaven and in hell the tables are laid alike. But in heaven everyone is fed and happy, but in hell all are angry and exhausted. Why? Because heaven is ruled by the law of God and everybody loves everyone and offers the best piece to the other. In hell anger rages and everybody groaks. Is the morality clear? You have to live by the laws of love.

Thanks you for the interview, Your Eminence!

When I bid good-bye to His Eminence and went into the church yard the Sun came out from gray clouds and illuminated the dull Baltic day…

Ksenia Zagorovskaya,

for Amber Bridge